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Old People Need Foods That Boost The Immune System
To live a quality life, old folks need food that strengthens the immune system. With them around, it would be possible and even easy to avoid and fight diseases. They may even aid in allowing people to at least live comfortable lives. Thus they must be present in one’s regular diet.
According to Hippocrates, let food be your medicine. Eating certain foods is helpful for that reason. Specific nourishments help maintain and also develop areas of the human body. These food items reduce one’s susceptibility to diseases. So having portions of them during meals makes sense.
Why Must The Elderly Have Food That Strengthens The Immune System
Aging makes people more vulnerable to bacterial and viral invasion and infection. Being old turns the body’s immune responses less effective. It’s likely why many geriatric patients get sick often.
Food, unlike medicine, gets absorbed in the intestines after digestion. It may take a while before they help enhance one’s immunity. But at least they are often not risky to consume. What humans consider sustenance is often safe to eat.
Effects Of Aging On The Immunity Of Seniors
Wear and tear happen. So it is also natural for specific things to get affected.
- Old age often makes it challenging for the body to do certain functions. For one, it may be become hard to distinguish foreign substances from self cells. Thus autoimmune problems might surface.
- Parts of the body become frail after long-term use. Those responsible for immunity get affected. These are the tonsils, thymus gland, bone marrow, lymph nodes, and spleen.
- There are fewer white blood cells produced and thus weaker protection due to old age.
- Macrophages that consume things the body considers as threats become slower.
- T and B cells that respond to antigens or substances that induce immune responses get slower too.
Why Folks Recommend Foods That Help Boost Immune System
This is often a subject that surfaces when comparing food with medicine. The consumption of nourishments is also even compared to exercise and sleep. But this is quite understandable as people almost always want to get the best. It is only that eating food is an “aspect” of living a healthy life. So it’s what can “also” help improve the immune system.
Food Is Great For The Immunity Because…
- People take it by choice for their entire life and the body accepts it right away, for the most part. Only portions of medicines that enter the body get absorbed. Those who are sick are the ones that usually have medications to get better.
- Food that strengthens the immune system is for everyone. Pills, injectables, and patches are only for select individuals and cases. Consuming animals and greens often don’t result in health complications. Taking drugs may lead to side effects.
- You don’t need a prescription for food, unlike when buying drugs. Young and old can find all types of food items everywhere. Medicines are often only accessible in pharmacies, hospitals, and other medical suppliers.
- The benefits are long-term. Healthy eating is often for the inhibition of disease. Medications are usually there for immediate treatment.
Examples Of Senior Foods That Boost The Immune System
Almonds
Benefits
They are very easy to find and healthy to eat. Even though some might say that they are pricey, they come with lots of vitamin E and magnesium. Vitamin E is an antioxidant that prevents cellular damage. Magnesium helps fight off infection.
30 grams of it will already give you 7.7 milligrams of Vitamin E or alpha-tocopherol. With that same amount, you can also get 80 milligrams of magnesium. So that’s about 77 and 20 percent of Vitamin E and magnesium of the recommended daily allowance. Still, that weight of it alone can already supply 173 calories.
Other Details
They cost a bit more than other nuts due to the things required to get them but they are worth having. They are food that strengthens the immune system in convenient ways. They are small in size which makes them very easy to ingest. Eating raw and roasted versions is fine for snacks and as part of meals. $45, more or less, will already get you a pound of these nuts.
Blueberries
Benefits
These sweet and sometimes sour fruits are rich in flavonoids. These flavonoids are plant compounds that help with immunity. Biting down on them will not only let you enjoy them but also boost your immune system. This is because they give about 7.2 milligrams of flavonoids called anthocyanins. These anthocyanins help prevent undesirable kinds of inflammations in the body.
These berries also have vitamin C which promotes the production of white blood cells. These “killer cells” aid in protecting the body from infection. You can get 9.7 milligrams of vitamin C per 100 grams of blueberries.
Other Details
They also take some time to grow and need to be in specific conditions to thrive. Yet they make excellent snacks because of their size and flavor. People can eat them together with meals, as snacks at room temperature, or as frozen berries. The usual price per pound of it is $1.40.
Broccoli
Benefits
Many people know it because it contains many beneficial elements. Some even consider it the food that strengthens the immune system. To be specific, it has plenty of the A, C, and K vitamins. Vitamin A repairs and maintains mucosal barriers that trap infectious agents. As said, vitamin C is for better white blood cell production. Vitamin K helps in blood clotting and bone building and these affect one’s immunity.
76 grams of broccoli will already give you vitamin A and 6.08 micrograms of it. With that amount, you will also get vitamin C in 40 to 50 milligrams. Still, it can supply you with about 110 micrograms of K vitamins. Plus, they are suitable for old people because of their high fiber content. This means they are also great for digestion.
Other Details
The demand for them is high and they do become scarce from time to time. The cost per pound is around $1 per kilogram. It’s a vegetable that you can cook by steaming, sauteing, and even roasting. Blanching it for immediate consumption is possible too.
Garlic
Benefits
This is a vegetable that is very common in Asian kitchens and restaurants. It gives food a distinctive aroma and taste. But, flavor aside, people have been using it for a long time because of its benefits. It does have allicin which is an antimicrobial agent and antioxidant at the same time.
It having allicin means that it can do a lot of things at once. It can help inhibit bacterial growth and address inflammation by reducing it. Thus it can be a great meal addition not only for flavor but also for health purposes. Still, it’s great to have around because it also boosts nitric oxide levels. It relaxes blood vessels and thus lowers blood pressure levels.
Other Details
80% of the world’s supply of this comes from China and, because of recent events, it’s become pricey. A pound of it now costs $2. Yet, because of its medical benefits, it’s a vegetable that is worth buying. You will not likely get a lot of calories from this one. But at least the taste of your food and your health will be better with it.
Yogurt
Benefit
It’s an ideal dessert or snack for the elderly not only for its consistency and taste. Lactobacilli are present in this food so it has probiotics that can aid in gut health. They are what can preserve and improve digestion and nutrient absorption. Also, they can even fight bad bacteria. Thus it is not strange why so many have yogurt from time to time.
Aside from it having thousands of probiotics, a yogurt drink also has other things to offer. For one, it has calcium that helps make sure the body only attacks what is harmful. It’s also the nutrient that helps avoid autoimmune or self-attack responses. It also has magnesium which strengthens the body’s general immunity.
Other Details
A pint of yogurt is a little over $2 and many say that it’s a reasonable price for something so beneficial. Also, it’s very accessible since grocery and convenience stores sell it. Yet this food must not stay at room temperature for more than 2 hours. Those who eat them need to finish off all the contents of the containers after opening. That is to avoid getting them spoiled.
Considerations When Choosing Food For The Elderly
Even if foods that help boost immune system defenses are available, not all are ideal for all seniors. That is only because some old people have certain diet restrictions. Others even have problems when eating. So, before serving healthy food items to the elderly, try to consider these first.
Also, when feeding old people, it’s not only about them being able to eat and enjoying food. Caregivers need to make sure that they only get what they can chew and swallow. Also, they must only have what they can finish off and won’t cause them issues.
In Conclusion
It is easy to access food that strengthens the immune system so it’s worth getting them. They are good for old people since they need them the most. After all, when you’re old, your immune responses aren’t as great as they used to be. So it would be wise to have those that can help the elderly have some immunity support.
Different food items belong to the list of foods beneficial for the immune system. To avoid feeling overwhelmed, read about some of them to learn things. Don’t force yourself to have everything. Get your hands only on what you know is helpful and seniors could and would eat.
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